With summer fast approaching, Water Polo Australia is pleased to confirm the draw for the 2026 Australian Waterpolo League season.
The Australian Waterpolo League is the premier domestic competition, with 10 men’s and 10 women’s clubs from across the country competing for national honours.
As well as the draw confirmation, WPA has today unveiled an exciting new structure for the 2026 season.
Five rounds. 10 weeks.
That’s the bottom line of the new format which will see each round run over a four day weekend (Thursday to Sunday), with a one week break between each round.
The 2026 season An exciting new structure has been unveiled for the 2026 Australian Waterpolo League (AWL) season.
The 2026 season will get underway on 15 January 2026, and culminate in the AWL Finals Series at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre on 26-29 March 2026.
WPA CEO Tim Welsford said: “Our Australian Waterpolo League continues to go from strength to strength, and we’re proud to introduce some changes ahead of the 2026 season that will see more games happening on the same weekend right across the country.
“The new structure perfectly aligns with our 2024-2032 High Performance Strategy, providing a competition environment that helps us to develop athletes and coaches to perform in the big moments, and ultimately close the gap between our high performance system and the world’s best.
“I’m looking forward to the 2026 Australian Waterpolo League season, and continuing to work with our clubs to ensure that it goes from strength to strength,” he said.
Teams will compete against each other twice in the regular season, with the top six clubs at the conclusion of the regular season progressing to the 2026 AWL Finals Series.
The UNSW Wests Magpies men’s team will start their title defence against the Victorian Phoenix on 15 January at the Melbourne Sport and Aquatic Centre (Msac).
Two-time defending women’s premiers the Griffith University Queensland Thunder will commence their campaign against the Hunter Hurricanes on the same day at the Sleeman Sport complex.
Click here to view the 2026 Australian Waterpolo League fixture
